


Transcendence

by houtarou



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Guns, Implied Sexual Content, Insanity, Insomnia, Lots of guns, M/M, Older!Eren, Triggers, bashing religion, so many guns im so sorry, some mafia type shit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-29
Updated: 2016-01-29
Packaged: 2018-05-16 22:41:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5843749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/houtarou/pseuds/houtarou
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Two years can truly change a person. Even Levi.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Transcendence

**Author's Note:**

> hello! admin here!   
> i posted this on my wattpad (that_epic_turtle) as well, if you prefer that format!  
> thank you for reading! c:

 

"-I'm going to have to kill you."

Everything seemed to slow down. Levi's breathing, for example. It was like gravity was sitting on his chest, rendering him unable to inhale. Another, time. It appeared to stop, even if just for a moment. But maybe that was just his heart. That only happened in books anyways, right?

" _What?_ " the boy cried softly. Something blurred, whether it was from his panicked tears or the humid breeze on his glasses. He gaped at the man, waiting for his statement to sink in.

The man was tall, unreasonably so, fixed with a toothy grin. A fedora and lanky, greased hair shadowed over one eye- again, that could only happen in fiction!- shooting shivers up Levi's spine. He lifted the gun from its former almost cane-like use, hoisting it over one shoulder. A shotgun, maybe? Levi blinked. He wasn't that into firearms.

The man tilted his head in a way, spreading his feet and squaring his shoulders. "Later," he mumbled, tightening his pointer finger around the ring-ish trigger.

_This is it_ , Levi thought. _I'm going to die._ It's not like he _wanted_ to die. At this point, the only thing that he could do was swim in his shock, frozen in his shoes. The boy completely, utterly, accepted his death, in that moment. He'd been good, right, God? Forgive him for his sins.

Wind clawed Levi's tangled hair back, exposing his face. A loud explosion sparked pain in his right ear, and he clutched a hand to it, gasping. A foot had collided with the man's face. A literal foot! The entire foot! It was impossible- illogical- gravity-defying!

The man went flying, or so it appeared, and shot, hitting the plaster beside Levi's bewildered head. He roared on the floor, and the boy watched with wide eyes as he attempted to get up. The same foot crashed down on his temple, pinning his head to the floor.

The owner of the foot was clad in a suit. Black-lens glasses covered his identity, and he was currently scrawling with a pen on a pocketbook. The only things that separated him from your typical Matrix agent were the black suit, sun-kissed skin, and dark brown eyes.

"Kenny Ackerman" left his lips. _Ackerman?_ "Convicted of criminal hazing and attempted homicide." The words flowed effortlessly from the man. Levi wondered if he'd been forgotten. He edged along the wall with hitched breathing.

"Y-you don't understand," Kenny growled. "He's dangerous. Get your filthy foot off me, bastard."

A breathy laugh stopped Levi in his tracks. He watched in horror the glassed-fellow's lips upturning- though the horror aspect was unknown to Levi, yet apparent. The suit guy snapped his book shut, tucking it and the writing utensil in a pocket inside a flap of his jacket. "The dead shouldn't talk," he spoke with a velvety tone that sparked goosebumps on Levi's arms and cold sweat his neck. "Your ass must be jealous of all the shit that comes out of your mouth." The male pulled an object from his waistband. "Die, scum."

And he shot the man in the ear.

Stress pulled around Levi's eyes. He widened them to a painful extent. His mouth hung open, choked breathing escaping him. Nausea rolled in his stomach. Blood leaked out of the man's ears, his nose, his mouth, his eyes. None of that bothered him nearly as much as Kenny's bloodshot eyes, blankly staring at him. His heart tightened. The fedora rolled away. Levi resumed creeping along the wall. Please, God, he prayed. Save me.

Suit lifted his foot off Kenny's temple then. "Stop it right there, Levi Ackerman." A startled shriek left Levi.

"P-please don't kill me-me," Levi stuttered, his body trembling.

The man took a few steps forward, until he was right above Levi. Towering over him, the boy realized how tall he was. Suit whipped his glasses off with a hand. Levi then viewed the most beautiful eyes he'd ever seen. They were green... no, blue- both and neither at the same time, glowing widely. Levi found himself mesmerized, head tilted up. Suit closed his eyes, cocking his head, and smiled widely. "Now why would I do that?" he chuckled.

"Y-you just killed someone!" Levi blurted incredulously. He looked to the side, clutching his face. "What am I gonna do... I aided a murderer... I'm a murderer.... I'm a murderer..." He caught sight of blood, pooling closer and closer. Levi opened his mouth to scream.

A hand clapped over his lips, muffling the shout. Suit glanced behind him, smile vanished. "That won't do," he muttered to Levi. After a moment of silence, he spoke again. "You done?" Levi nodded tentatively, and the hand slipped away.

Suit reached into a pocket inside his jacket, puling out what almost looked like an engagement box, but longer. He put back on his glasses. "It's nothing personal," the man began, unclipping one of the sides. The lid opened. Levi couldn't see what was inside. "It's just my job." The box fell to the ground, revealing a needle in Suit's hand.

Levi took in a sharp breath. He scrambled backwards, slamming against the plaster. The bespectacled man pushed a knee up between Levi's legs and held one of his hands with his free one against the bullet hole, stopping any movement. "P-please- stop!" Levi whispered. His face burned scarlet, despite the circumstances.

"Sorry, kid," Suit replied, letting go of Levi's hand to push his head into an angle. The raven wrapped both hands around his arms, scratching. The needle went up, up, down into his neck.

Levi screamed out, his hands scrabbling at the needle. He gasped. It felt like fluids were filling his lungs. He choked and gagged air, and the suit guy grimaced. Levi couldn't see his eyes. "This is just too cruel," he told Levi, but his voice was far away. "I wish I didn't have to do this, you know."

Levi's head was warm when the needle was pulled out. His hands went limp. Suit bit his lip, lowering his knee. The boy realized fuzzily that that knee had been holding him up as he slid to the floor. He gasped, still flushed as if he were out of breath. The man crouched down, reaching his level. "I'm sorry, Levi," he apologized as his eyelids slid shut.

When Levi came to, he was out of that abandoned old building. Instead, he was on a sidewalk. And, lo and behold, a man with mesmerizing eyes was above him. Or, more specifically, _on top_ of him. Suit's palms were on each side of Levi's torso, his knees touching the smaller's thighs. Suit's face was close enough that Levi could feel his breath tickling his nose. The glasses were hidden, he guessed. And then he registered what was happening. 

He crab-walked backwards- again, like the _freaking_ protagonist in a shoujo _freaking_ anime- stuttering obscenities as a dark red flooded his cheeks. "Wh-wh-wh-what the hell is wrong with you?!" he yelled with a shaking pointer finger, his voice breaking into an octave higher than necessary. Suit cocked his head.

"Oh," he replied. "You're awake. You fainted a second ago, and I was just about to check your pulse when you woke up."

"Don't bullshit me!" Levi cried. Suit slowly stood, brushing his pants. He looked down at the kid, raising an eyebrow.

"What? I was being a caring citi-"

"What happened to that guy you killed?!" Levi interrupted hysterically. "What was that needle you stuck in my fucking neck?!" Suit's eyes widened unnaturally. His expression scared Levi, so he tucked his chin, faltering his gaze. "Um..."

Suit took a step back. His brows creased up. "No..." His eyes glanced around. People simply walked around the two in a large oval, heeding them no mind. "Don't holler nonsense like that. You were supposed to forget. Come with me." He took hold of Levi's wrist.

The raven jerked his hand arm away, clenching his hands into fists. "Tough," he choked out, managing a smirk. "I have BIBLE study soon." Levi jumped to his feet. Muffled laughing stopped him from departing, however. Suit covered his mouth with a hand, turning his face away. His giggles were painfully obvious. Levi's eyes twitched. "You think my religion is a joke?" Levi spat, taking offense.

Suit, still kneeling, looked up at Levi. The raven's eyes were alight, his eyebrows digging into his skin. The suited man's eyes were squinting softly in mirth, his cheeks a light pink over his bright teeth. "I-I'm sorry," he chuckled. "I don't mean to laugh at your religion. It's just..." He got up with a deep sigh. Suit lifted his chin at a glaring Levi, widening his smile. " _God can't help you now._ " His eyes were almost manic.

Levi gritted his teeth. "Asshole," he forced out. "Aren't you thirty or something?"

"Levi."

"How dare you saw that. First, you murder someone-"

" _Levi_."

"-then you shoot me up with some kind of sleep drug! And not only that, but-"

"Hey."

"-you take advantage of me by laying on top of me _in public_. And then you disrespect my religion! Just because you're twice as old as me or something doesn't mean you can-"

Suit cut him off by grabbing his shoulders and smashing his lips against the boy's. _Now_ people noticed them. Levi's widened eyes widened even more, his pupils dilating. His face and ears burned. He could practically hear the screech of a tea kettle.

The man pulled back, dropping his arms. He gave a lopsided grin. "I could tell you weren't going to stop ranting unless I did something about it." He lowered his eyelids halfway, pressing a finger to his lips. "Don't tell your mom, 'kay?" Suit grabbed his hand and tugged.

Levi let the strange man pull him into a stumbling run. He was frozen. Cold fingers brushed his lips. _I was kissed by a man._ He was astonished. _He stole my first kiss!_ He made a noise when the toe of his shoe caught on an uneven sidewalk, and almost fell. When Suit stopped finally, the two were in front of a van. A white van. A suspicious, white van. The male turned to Levi, raising his hands in defense. "Now-"

He broke off mutely as the snap of a whip-like noise cracked in the air. Levi lowered his reddening palm, eyebrows knitting down. Suit gazed down with a mildly surprised expression, pink cheek lighting up his eyes.

Levi's voice was low. "How shallow can you be to think you're justified to shut me up in that manner? Instead of rubbing your lips all over someone half your age, why don't you man up and listen to when someone's talking to you. _You_ should be the mature one here, not me, the child."

Suit grinned, eye twitching. "For someone as small as you, you've sure got a big mouth..." He rubbed the back of his head, looking to the side, before sighing himself into a slump. "I gotta take you with me, though. Come on."

Levi lifted his chin. "No _freaking_ way." With that, the boy turned around to stroll in the opposite direction. However, the damned guy snatched up Levi's hand. The smaller jerked to a halt, eyes wide. Suit grinned crookedly when Levi turned back. "First of all, I can't let someone with such a disastrous sense of fashion get away."

The raven glanced down, pursing his lips. Over sized, brown cardigan dropping, unbuttoned, on top of a shirt with black skinny jeans and Chuck's. Nothing wrong with that, Levi thought. He'd looked down so quickly that his glasses slid down his nose. Levi pushed them up with his forefinger and scratched overgrown, brown hair parted somewhere in the middle. "I don't see what you mean. Also, that's a really bad pickup line. And I'm not into grandpas." He blinked at Suit.

The man looked creepy, smiling with those big, furrowed eyebrows. "Just come on. Do I have to put you at gunpoint?"

" _Huh?_ " Levi spat just before Suit whipped a gun out of his jacket. A gasp tore out of his throat- "What the-"-as the black firearm whacked him upside the head.

"Whoops," Suit mumbled. The gun went off in his hands, and Levi's eyes widened, staring up at the male with a slack jaw. A shrill ring faded from both's ears. "I hope that didn't hit anyone's car. Now, get in the car, _please_."

Levi raised an eyebrow in exasperation. _Seriously? Was this guy mentally retarded?_ He did as he was told this time, to stop the idiot, the smaller was beginning to know him as, from doing something else. Suit opened the back door, bending an arm behind his back and bowing gracefully, waiting. The raven  could just see the smile under brown locks in midair. He lifted his hand and brought it down briskly with a _thud_ , like a karate chop, upon the mop of hair. Only proceeding that did he get in the van.

There was a single bench separating the seating area from the trunk. Levi sighed at the seat belt- a length of rope that supposedly went over your waist. Suit got into the driver's seat with the sound of leather tightening. He exhaled as well. "Ready to go, kiddo?"

Levi clenched his jaw. "Don't call me that, as if we're going to get ice cream. Where are you taking me to, kidnapper?"

"Just that!" Suit laughed, bringing the van to life. "Actually, I have to take you to my boss." _Boss?_   "How old are you, Levi?"

"Today's my eighteenth birthday," Levi mumbled. _I was on my way to Isabel's house, using BIBLE study as a pathetic excuse._ He shut his eyes. The van puttered its way out of the parking lot.

His sigh was more weary this time. Suit rubbed the back of his head. "Jeez. That explains a lot."

"Um..." Levi's entire body shook along with every move the vehicle made. "Can you tell me something? Anything? I'm so confused."

He met Suit's eyes in the rearview mirror. They were tightened with mirth, and something else. "Hey, I'll let you in on something top-secret." The brunet's fingers tapped on the steering wheel to some beat in his head.

Levi leaned forward. He'd be lying if he said he didn't feel his heart pick up the pace. _Something top-secret? Please let it be something to quench my thirst for answers._ His brows furrowed with concentration. A bead of sweat trickled down his neck. "Yeah?"

"Well," Suit began. "I shouldn't be telling you this, but..." He combed his hand back through his bangs, exposing a forehead briefly. "My name's Eren."

* * *

 

The older man looked him up and down, bent at the waist with a cheeky grin. He chuckled before straightening, and the light illuminated his goggles. "He's perfect!"

"Um, Hanji-" Eren began tentatively, raising a hand. So this four-eyed-freak's name was Hanji?

He clapped Eren on the back, interrupting him. "Nice work, Bright Eyes. The higher-ups will love him- eventually."

"I don't think-"

"Now!" Glasses beamed, turning his attention back to Levi. "What's so important about you, besides your face?"

_I can't tell if that's a compliment or an insult,_ Levi thought. "Dunno."

"It's his father..." Eren whispered not-so softly in Hanji's ear. His eyes widened.

"Don't tell me- Your father, his name is Ackerman? As in The Underground?" Eren nodded discreetly.

"I don't know about any of this!" Levi exclaimed, moving his hands up and down. "I didn't even know my father was still alive! Tell me what's going on."

Hanji rubbed his chin before sucking in a breath. "Listen, your dad... He's still alive, to say the least." Levi's eyes widened. His lips parted. _Here it was._ "He's an important member of The Underground. You've heard of them, right?" The raven nodded. They were infamous in Chicago- one of the most feared and respected gangs there. No- they weren't even a gang. The Underground was a society.

Eren had driven for what seemed like hours, before stopping. When Levi was let out, they were in some below-ground parking garage. After walking for some time, they'd come upon- or met up with, Levi couldn't tell- this nutcase, and the rest was history.

"Now that you're of age," Hanji continued, "you're practically target practice for surrounding gangs and the like. Everyone and their brother wants your head, and is going to try to kill you, just to get even with your dad."

_Surrounding gangs? Of age? Important? To_ Dad _?_ "Why eighteen?" Levi asked.

"Much like foster parents or adoption homes, agencies can only house a child and hide their identity until they're eighteen. Your father had protection for you in the form of your mother. His partner, to be exact," the male informed, sounding like he was reciting a textbook. Eren nodded, cupping his chin.

"So, who are you guys, then?" Levi questioned.

Hanji's eyes widened in disbelief, and he glared at a shrugging Eren. "Eh?! You didn't tell him?" He turned back to Levi. "Well, Eren was assigned to protect your sorry ass. Personal orders from Daddy. Welcome to The Underground."

But Levi was already halfway back to the parking garage. He raised a hand. "See you."

Eren jogged along, jumping in his path. "Wait a minute." When Levi attempted to go around the older, Suit lowered hands on his shoulders. "If cops find surveillance footage or an eyewitness testimony of us earlier, you're an accomplice. You're toast."

"I'm seriously late for BIBLE study."

"He believes in God?" Hanji quirked in the distance.

"Listen," Eren urged irritably. "Once members from Kenny's place find out he's dead, they'll know. And they'll come. Your mother knows we interpreted you. She's gone, Levi. You're in our care now. You can either come willingly, or we can force you to come. With us is the safest place you can be. It's up to you."

Levi whirled to face Eren. As he looked up, clenching fists as his side, something shiny sparked in his blue glare, and Eren knew. The taller man's shoulders slumped, his expression slack. However. "I'll go," Levi hissed. "Please take care of me."

Hanji ululated, "All right! Let's go!" He rolled up a sleeve, flexing that arm.

There was a lot of walking involved that day. Eren peeked a look at Levi. His expression was unreadable, for once. Levi was led to a cell-like room, with a bare bed, a desk with a ratty chair, and a window that showed a view of brick wall. "This is your room. We're low on funds, but if there's anything you need..." Eren trailed off.

"I'll go run to get dinner!" Hanji called, and he hurried away, adjusting his goggles.

"Why don't you go meet everyone else while we wait?" Eren asked Levi.

The raven nodded, and Suit led him further down the hall. "Hey," Levi began, directing the other's attention. "You stop treating me like a child. I'm eighteen."

"Just barely," he countered in amusement. "You'll always be a child compared to me."

"Anyone's a child compared to a grandpa," Levi snapped, and Eren's grin slid off. He led Levi to a rather lounge-looking room. People of around both's age filled various couches and foldable chairs around a 90's television propped on top of a microwave sitting on a counter, currently showing a news station. They turned as Eren and Levi entered the room, showing various expressions.

Eren pointed as he swept the group, each greeting in some way, through nods, waves, blushes, or small calls. "Levi, this is..." He should have payed more attention, but Levi's mind was focused on the mini TV.

The raven took a step forward, in the midst of the introductions. "Hey," he said. "Eren, that's us. That's about us!"

Indeed it was. The footage showed the very same scene Levi had almost died in only hours ago. Instead of Kenny was white tape. Yellow numbered signs showed the fedora, the bullet hole in the plaster, the shotgun, next. Apparently, no leads had been given or found yet.

The group breathed a sigh of relief. "That's our tech branch for you," said someone Levi thought was named Petra, a girl with longer, ginger hair and amber eyes. "You guys were conspicuous as all get-out, too."

"We'll have to thank them later," Eren laughed, showing white teeth to the ginger. He opened his mouth to say more when Hanji burst down the hall and through the two, shouting nonsensical crap in his scratchy yell.

"Today was a sale!" he screeched. "How could I resist?" In his arms were bags of Chinese takeout. The girl known as Sasha immediately stood at the ready, for whatever reason may have been. Hanji passed out boxes to everyone, handing Levi a bag of egg rolls.

They sat in that room, watching television with Americanized Oriental food crammed in their mouths. Levi slid down to the floor, leaning up against a couch. Eren collapsed next to Levi, and the people filling the furniture grumbled about his height.

"Crab rangoon?" he asked, offering the greasy bag. Levi shook his head, setting down the rolls on a small coffee table. Eren frowned. "Levi, I'm sorry for your circumstances, but you've got to eat _something_. Training starts in the morning." When Levi pulled up his legs, he added, "You have to adapt to this. You can't have an ordinary life anymore."

"I get it," Levi snapped, and he tore into an egg roll.

After everyone had eaten their full, Eren led Levi back to his room. And with a wink and a crooked grin, the raven was alone. Levi stared at the ceiling from his bed. Or, what he could make of it, really. The only source of light seemed to come from the crack under his closed door.

Alone. His mother was gone, to wherever his father was. Isabel and Farlan, he'd never see again. Through his eyes, Levi's entire life was controlled by the beef other gangs had with The Underground. _Welcome to adulthood, Levi!_

Early on, he had realized that staying here was his only choice. _If I could train well enough to be able to live on my own, without protection..._ Instead of feeling inspired, a rock dropped into his stomach. Even Mother left without a word, he thought glumly.

Well, whatever. He'd have to do whatever was waiting for him, no matter what, so resolution clenched his fists.

Levi didn't remember when he'd fallen asleep, but there he was, sliding on glasses to a beaming Hanji. He squinted up. "Rise and shine, baby!" Hanji boomed. He tossed Levi a bundle. "Eat up 'n take those with you. Come on!" In the smaller's hands was a sweat shirt and a protein bar. He ate that quickly, tugging on the thick cloth as he jogged to keep up with Four-Eyes.

They entered a, what looked like, gun shop. Surely, Levi was too young to be in one! Hanji waved to a man behind a counter, who straightened and called, "Target practice?" Levi assumed the shop was connected to wherever he was being housed. They had come in through a door titled _Management._

"Aye, the usual. Be needing practice for _him_." Hanji jerked a thumb back to Levi.

"Who, that squirt?" the man guffawed.

"Oy, oy," Levi mumbled, narrowing his eyes.

The man reached the pair by then. "Very well." He fitted Levi with safety equipment, goggles and vests- Levi understood why Hanji made him wear a sweatshirt; the smallest vest wouldn't have fit normally- and led him into another room.

They were in more of a shooting range now, the walkway lined with booths. The man led Levi to one. Beyond his cell were targets, attached to metal rods. "You know anything about guns?" he asked Levi. He shook his head. The man groaned. He pulled a standard handgun from somewhere within his depths- "We'll start with this for now"- and went over how to use it. Levi yawned.

Soon, he was squaring his shoulders, tilting his head... Just like Kenny. As the man took his hands off of Levi's back and the gun, edging away, Levi shook. The gun shivered in his grip. The raven was too stiff. "Wait-" the man began, but-

"Eh?" Levi looked to the side shakily, but his fingers clenched and the gun fired. He yelped at the noise. The firearm kicked, and, most unaware, whapped Levi on the face. Particularly the nose.

Levi stumbled back, his arms numb at his sides and the gun dangling from the pointer finger wrapped around the trigger. The man roared with laughter, slapping a knee and leaning on the edge of the booth. The target was unhurt. Levi glared up at him with disbelief, a tickling sensation running down his upper lip and into his mouth, copper-like.

The next few days had this routine. Training, meals, learning. As Levi adjusted, the days grew into a week, and then two weeks, and then it had been over a month since he was brought to his new home. The new year started.

"Eren," Levi piped up one evening. Usually, he hadn't had time to talk to the great oaf, due to him hardly being around, but the raven had spotted and caught up to him while eating an apple (which was soon long forgotten; the whereabouts of its freshness was unknown). "What do you and the others do?"

Eren cast down a hasty glance. When Levi _did_ see him, he was always less smiley. "Not now, Levi."

"Okay," Levi declared. "Then I'll go with you."

"No."

The raven tugged on Eren's arm, making him stop impatiently. "It's almost February, and I've seen you more when you were kidnapping me than in the past month. Where does everyone go? Will I do the same thing you all do? When? I still don't know anything, Eren!"

Eren watched, still, Levi for a moment. Yearning filled the younger's eyes. Then. "I don't have the time for this. Stay here." He yanked his arm free and left. Levi caught the shimmer of a silver gun. And that was all.

It was well known, the minuscule funds of Levi's new family- they had treated him well enough, and vice versa, to be called as much- so it was no surprise that it was almost winter again outside when Levi bought his first gun and licence. It was snowing before he even put it to good use.

By then, Levi had developed gross, sticky feelings for the idiot. For some reason, his heart jumped into overdrive at every thought, glimpse, or sound of Eren, not to mention _another_ body part jumping. Every time he walked into a room, Levi had to steady himself. It was maddening.

Long before the raven's nineteenth birthday, he had abandoned his old glasses for cheap contacts that itched and dried his eyes. "It's just temporary until we can afford more, better ones!" Hanji cooed months ago. He didn't know whether his eyes had gotten used to them, he had learned to ignore the itchiness, or both, but the shitty slices of plastic were never upgraded, so it wasn't like he couldn't _not_ get used to them.

On top of contacts, Levi had gotten his hair cut. The first time he'd entered a hair shop after moving in with a gang, Hanji told the female stylist, "Please, just, the cheapest thing you have."

The woman stared, horrified, at Levi's mop of dark hair. It frizzed in the hot air that day, and stuck up in some odd places on top of an annoyingly familiar cowlick. Levi blushed in embarrassment underneath overgrown bangs. He'd left the shop that day with a hair style not unlike Eren's, only much darker, the raven realized with horror the very evening.

Somewhere during the summer, Levi was allowed to acquire a job, and so he did. Immediately following his first paycheck, he marched into the very same hair shop for another try. _An undercut makes me feel much more content_ , he thought with a faint smile, earning his respect for the hair stylist. She'd grinned, telling him almost motherly-like, how rare it was for customers to be so satisfied after telling her to surprise them.

Not only did he get a regular checkup for hair and contacts, but Levi improved his wardrobe. At least, the quality. There was only so much Goodwill and the clearance isle of Wal-Mart could do. With contacts, different hair, better clothes, and now a gun, Levi hardly recognized himself as he entered his last -teen year. He ignored the feelings-for-Eren part above all, fruitlessly.

What seemed immediately after Christmas (he'd gotten cheap gifts for everyone in his "family"; Hanji got him a razor kit, to Levi's ire; Petra, a new but very valuable friend, bought him fashionable glasses and very nice contacts that fit him- he'd blushed so deeply; Eren gave him a BIBLE to replace the one at home he wasn't allowed to retrieve, and an egg roll; Levi looked sunburnt in the face and couldn't meet his eyes for a week; everyone else seemed to have the same gift idea as him) and New Year's, his training changed.

Now, it had advance to more intense weapons and just as equally as hardcore workouts. Hanji, who was more like a mother/trainer than part of tech support and caption of her section of The Underground, was fed up with Levi's femininely soft body, flabby arms, and wiry legs. He'd shouted angrily one snowy afternoon as Levi leaned heavily against a wall for the third time, panting, a large box in his throbbing arms.

"That's enough, you pansy!" he'd shouted. "Eren would never fall in love with such a sissy!" Levi flushed angrily, a tinge embarrassed. Yes, the annoying Four-Eyes had caught on quite magnificently early in the game. He was the very antonym of dense, even giving Levi "hints" for a successful love life ("You hardly ever even talk to him! Quit acting like a twelve-year-old schoolgirl!").

It was hard to follow the advice. Late at night, his body laden with exhaustion from the day's training, perverted thoughts harassed and aroused his mind. And then, the following day, Levi wallowed in embarrassment and shame. A torturous cycle, really.

But today, more pressing thoughts concerned Levi. He snagged two of Eren's friends, Mikasa and Armin, at lunch over ramen. "What do you guys _do_ everyday?" Levi cried, exasperated. It was just them three today. Everybody else was out, doing whatever one of these told him right now. Levi had a break from the man at the shooting range, known as Pixis, and Hanji.

Mikasa regarded him calmly, clearly looking down on purpose. The two personalities never mixed well. "Private business."

"She's right," Armin laughed nervously. "It's nothing a youngster like you should worry about." They wouldn't speak any more about the matter.

And Levi honestly tried not to concern himself with the subject any longer. Not until the day Petra died.

It was some January or February day. He was roaming through the halls, which there weren't many of, trying to find something to do on a day off. Footsteps hurried in the distance; Levi recognized them as Eren's. He turned, smiling, to see him holding a sweaty Petra. They passed, neither seeming to notice the small male. Levi promptly followed suit.

The brunet was led to an infirmary. He watched from the doorway left open, shocked quiet. Eren lay Petra on a hospital bed, people surrounding her. He caught pieces of information. "Quick- too late for sedatives- at least sanitize- too late- too late- not at all- can't- hand me- Eren, get out- you alright?- of course she's- database?- twenty-four, female- Ral- no _time_ -"

Petra spotted Levi hidden in shadows over the doctors' chaos. "Please don't watch, Levi," she mouthed, smiling. Something glittery ran down her cheek. A machine beeped faster.

Some doctor, identity concealed by a mask, noticed Levi then. They closed the door, and Levi watched through the slotted window. A jagged green line jumped up and down on a monitor. Someone gave Petra an IV drop. A surgery was taking place. Someone shot Petra in her kidney and stomach.

Levi's breath fogged the window, and he swiped to clear it.

Eren sat in a chair with dull eyes. Levi couldn't hear anything. Petra's mouth opened and closed rapidly. The monitor's green line went up and down, forward, forward. The doctors hurried. Petra stopped moving her mouth. She looked through the window, met Levi's wide eyes, and died.

Levi threw open the door and flung himself at Petra. His hearing stopped working. Petra was still warm, and when she was cold, hands grabbed Levi. Hands pulled Levi away. He tasted salt water in his mouth, and spit flew in the air as he shouted deaf words. Petra's eyes stared at Levi, into Levi, and all he could see was Kenny, his eyes bleeding. Levi had Petra's blood and Kenny's blood on his hands, and his body, and in his mouth.

Levi woke up in Eren's arms. Sometime in between now and then, he'd passed out. Eren's arms tightened. Levi's eyes stung. He fell back asleep. He woke again, in his bed. The crack underneath his room door was dark. Eren's silhouette sat in the chair by his desk, breathing deeply. After a moment, Levi stood and left the room.

He took a shower, scrubbing his body over and over again, but the feeling that he had blood on him didn't leave. It never would. By the time Levi returned to his room, Eren was awake. The light was on, and Eren had circles under his eyes. He waited until Levi finished praying, and then said, "We were attacked. What everyone here does everyday are orders filled out by people like your father.

"What happened to Petra is almost daily. This burden will be with you for the rest of your life. I expect no more actions of you like today's, from here on out. That is your job."

"Whenever I think I'm starting to understand you," Levi whispered, "you pull a wild card on me. My friend died, Eren. She's _dead_. I'll never see her again. How can you _expect_ that of me?"

Eren stood. "This is your life now. You have no choice but to move on. Goodnight." He began to leave, but stopped as Levi held the end of Eren's sleeve between two fingers. The raven stared down. He bit his lip.

"You don't have to hide it, Eren. I'm sad, too." He lifted his hands to Eren's chest as the taller turned to fully face him, and clenched them there, into the cloth. They shook. Eren's eyes lidded as Levi pushed his head into his shirt and cried. His hands twitched at his sides. "I'm so sad," Levi sobbed. "I loved her Eren, I love everyone. What am I to do...?" He trailed off, voice breaking. "Such nice people- risking their lives everyday..."

* * *

 

It was summer now. Not butterfly, swimsuit-and-popsicle-with-laughter summer, but August-summer. Boiling heat prickled sweat on one's skin the minute they stepped outside. That kind of summer where the air conditioners get busted, and fans blow around the spicy air. Hanji made cookies on tinfoil under the window in his car last week.

Levi slumped over the warm counter, arms spread. The floor was cold and tempting, but too disgusting to risk, and others had filled it anyways. He settled for the marble counter, taking his chances with _that_ sanitation (God forbid _anyone_ have proper hygiene in this house).

His tank stuck to him wetly, and he watched through half-lidded eyes as a drop of sweat creeped down a lock of his bangs. It collected on the tip for a long minute, and then dropped, making a mini puddle not two inches from Levi's cheek. That was the highlight of his day, and that was sad.

Not that he cared. His training was every other day now, and Hanji looked down on Levi with pride shining in his eyes. He should, by all means. The effects of all that goddamn exercise rippled throughout his body. Levi's arms were very nicely defined, and his torso, quote Hanji, was Hollywood worthy, end quote. And his top outline _every_ crevice of his abs, dampened and clingy with sweat.

Somewhere along the lines, after watching two people's deaths, eating ramen everyday, and loving Eren, Levi had lost his self from before. The Levi from back when he'd go to Isabel's house, read the BIBLE everyday, and eat macaroni with his mother, was lost, somewhere. Someplace underneath guns and blood and ramen and Eren.

In less than four months would be two years since Levi watched Kenny die, changing his life course. Two _whole_ years of training and gangs and Eren. Two years of _Eren_. Levi became quite fond of tea lately. Today, however, was not the day for the rich aroma of something hot, hot, hot- he sweat to think of tea.

Keys chimed prettily as they clunked to the counter. Slowly, Levi tilted his head up. Eren frowned at him, hands in fists on his sides. "Well, _someone_ looks refreshing," Levi murmured.

Eren balanced his weight on one foot. Levi watched his hips move. The brunet swung a thumb over his shoulder, grinning. "I have leftover money. Let's go get ice cream. For real this time."

Levi deadpanned. " _Ice cream?_ " Eren nodded, and the smaller added hotly, "It'll melt before we can say 'sticky'."

"Guess we'll have to eat it quick." Eren winked, grabbed the keys, and turned to the door. "Make it quick, pint-sized."

" _Oy_ ," Levi grumbled, but unstuck himself from the counter and followed him.

It was impossibly hotter outside. The sunset was supposed to signal cooling down for the day, but there showed no sign of that. "Not happening," Levi said to himself, and twisted around to face the door. He'd only made a measly two paces back inside when a vise-like grip yanked Levi outside by the collar.

"It's so nice out," Eren hummed, dragging Levi along the sidewalk.

The cheapest ice cream shop in town, according to Eren, looked abandoned. So did the streets, to be honest. Nevertheless, Eren strode through the door with a _ding_ , cheery as all get-out. It was, to Levi's disappointment, no cooler inside. _Some ice cream shop._

The two seemed to be the only persons in the building. It was as if the owner declared today too hot to work and left, forgetting to lock up. Eren clinked the counter bell, humming a tune. A woman staggered out of a back room, causing Eren to jump. Her brown hair was pulled messily into a high ponytail, and her sun-kissed skin was even darker than Eren's. She even had freckles. Her glare was murderous. Levi liked her.

She slapped both hands on the counter, eyeing them. "Well?" she snapped.

"Aw, Ymir, don't give us that look." Her eyes narrowed into slits. "W-well, we'll take two vanillas..."

After lopping already-melting ice cream into two cones, she paused a bit longer than necessary before closing the counter. Eren gave her change and she rung it in rather rudely, slamming and punching digits and all. Ymir trudged to the back room right after the exchange, where Levi could hear the faint buzz of a fan.

Two girls right outside were the first passerby Levi had seen that day. He focused on them to avoid Eren, licking his ice cream. They were about the same height, holding hands and laughing. The taller had curly hair springing to her step just over shoulder blades; and the shorter had wavy hair that curled around the nape of her neck, her bangs pulled back by a headband. Both were brunettes.

Levi faced Eren when he couldn't see them any longer. "Why are you so gung-ho today?"

Eren looked offended. His eyes glittered in the sunlight streaming inside. "I'm always gung-ho." But by Levi's unconvinced look, he added, "I haven't had a day off in forever. Boy, it's warm today."

"Just a little, fucking, bit." Of all people, his heart had to fawn over _Eren_? They finished their snack. Levi's fingers twitched in his lap, fidgeting.

"Levi." Eren was serious now. He knew it. This was planned. It always appeared to be. "It's been decided. Your father. He's ordered us to ambush a certain society. The one Kenny Ackerman was a part of. They've been a pain in the ass for years. Next month or so, it will happen. I wanted to tell you privately, since only a secret number of people are going. I'm _trusting_ you to respect what I'm telling you."

"I'm going, too."

"Levi, _no_."

"You shouldn't have told me. I want to go, too. I'm _ready_ , Eren! Ask Hanji!"

"I confided in you because I trust you. Don't mess that up. You're safer here."

"Since when do you care? Eren, don't give me that shit. I'm almost twenty- you can't lock me away in a tower for years on end like a princess." Eren looked frustrated. Levi leaned forward, laying it on heavy. "If you're going to be so thickheaded, I'll-"

"You'll... what?" Eren burst, growing nearer as well. "Enough of this. You're acting like a child. I'm trying to give you what you want; can't you do the same once in a while? Why so persistent? Why can't you listen to me for once? Why do you have to go against everything I say, even though I try to trust you, Levi? _Why?_ "

Levi stood, yelling. "Because _I love you_!" He glared down at Eren, fists clenched at his sides. His furious expression was the pure opposite of Eren's shocked one. He stared dumbly at Levi. "Can't you tell?" he added. "Couldn't you? I'm so _frustrated_ with you, and you don't even realize I'm fucking gay! How? _How?_ "

Eren stood. He strode briskly to the shop door, thought, and pulled Levi along the way by his hand. The raven's hand was the most pleasant heat he'd felt all summer.

Levi, thunderstruck, let Eren drag him down the street, through the parking garage, past the doors of their home, into a stuffy hall, and against a wall. He didn't recognize this hall at first, but then it came to him. This was the hospital wing. No one ever came down this way.

Eren pursed his lips, eyebrows furrowing. They were shadowed by dim lighting, and Levi noticed how overgrown the taller's hair had gotten. Brown locks curled over his forehead. Eren strangled out, "You too." The raven almost didn't catch it.

Levi looked up at Eren through a bowed head. His arms shook as he lifted them, and his fingers landed lightly on warm shoulders. Exhaling softly, Levi stood on the tips of his toes and pushed his lips against Eren's. He turned his head to a certain angle, and he felt Eren stifle a noise. "Please," Levi breathed. " _Please._ "

"Not here, then," Eren murmured. Their feet whispered on the ground as he led Levi to a room. The raven soon realized as his. He'd never been in Eren's room, but it was too dark to make out more than dark lumps once Eren shut the door.

The two sat on the bed. It would be dark outside now, Levi wondered randomly. He turned to Eren. "I- I want you to d-do it with me. Is that okay?" (He couldn't bear to say the word.) Eren nodded tentatively. "But, Eren, I don't know how to. But, I _want_ to. I- I just-"

"Be quiet, Levi. I can't stand you sometimes... I'll do it." And he did.

Hot thoughts fizzled and popped in Levi's confused mind. He lay down and let Eren make the moves, focusing on not losing himself in the moment. Eren brushed and touched, and palmed and hinted, and pulled and pushed, and teased, mostly.

Levi's body ached. He arched his back in a way he never thought he could. His shorts were an annoyance, and then they were gone. His skin shivered and became rough with goosebumps as Levi fought down loud noises.

The pain was nagging at first, but then it hurt. And then it hurt a lot. Levi twisted and tried to stay still all at the same time. It hurt, and it hurt, and it _hurt_.

_And then it felt good._

It was almost like Eren had pushed a button in him, switching all the pain into pleasure. Everything that was said was blurred. A mixture filled his ears. There were a lot of noises and commands and questioning tones: "Is this okay?" "I'm going to do this..." and a lot of "Eren"'s and "Levi"'s blended everything.

Levi held on, and he held on, and he let go.

By then, he had lost his senses. Levi lay still, trying to catch his breath and collect himself. A tear fell from his eye. It slid down his cheek sideways, into his ear. Eren was breathing next to him. That's right. They were in _his_ room. Eren had let go, too. "Thank you, Eren." It was barely a whisper.

Eren was quiet for so long Levi was beginning to think he'd fallen asleep. Were people supposed to go to sleep right after? He'd lost so much, and gained so much more. And yet, he'd sinned. _Oh, fuck it,_ he thought.

"Don't say that. We can't do that again," Eren responded faintly. It hurt.

"Eren?"

"That was wrong of me. I'm sorry." He rolled over, his back facing him. "I'm so sorry. When I saw you, looking at me like that... I had hoped you'd stop me."

"Stop it."

"I'm twice your age, Levi. I'm disgusting."

"I'm an adult. Age doesn't matter to me when Eren is involved." Eren shivered. He paused. "Please let me sleep here." After a long wait, he hummed an approval.

That was the first night Levi slept with someone.

He was alone when he woke, but the rumpled spot where Eren had slept still retained heat, so it hadn't been long. He looked for his clothes- they were mostly on the floor- and dressed, feeling wary. Then he took a shower.

The steaming water helped massage his sore hips. As Levi scrubbed grime, dried sweat, and other unnameable contaminations from his body, yesterday's events flooded him. He needed to join everyone. The feeling that blood was on him wouldn't leave.

Hanji was eating cereal when Levi entered the main room, tugging a shirt down. "Where's Eren?" It was just them two.

A sly glint shined in Hanji's eyes. Or maybe that was just his goggles reflecting light. "He's already out for the day. Why?" he drawled.

"No reason." Levi sat next to him. "Where'd you get the money for milk?" He showed him the bowl of soggy bits. It was water. "Oh."

"Yeah." He took a bite, then pointed with the spoon. "You've got training today. Get moving."

"Hanji, let me join everyone next month for the ambush. You _know_ I'm ready. So does Pixis."

He whirled on Levi so quick, a lock of hair almost brushed his nose. "I won't tell you that these are our plans I photocopied." He tossed a brochure-folded map. "I also won't mention that your father personally requested you for it, but that it was vetoed down by various members. Now get _going_." He shoved Levi. It was like Hanji was full-to-bursting with the want for him to join.

The raven hurried off, tucking the paper in the waistband of his jeans with a vague dazed feeling. He had a hard time concentrating that day, even resulting in a number of clipboards upside the head. He pored over the map every night, memorizing the locations, dates, words, orders, members. It seemed like everyone who lived here was going, plus a few others. He memorized it all in a week.

Through immense amounts of instruction, memorization, and tire, Levi never remembered seeing Eren. It was fine by him, at first. He wouldn't know what to say anyways.

September rolled along. The tremendous heat dimmed a notch, so Levi didn't have to take sweaty showers as often. As the date crept closer, he slept less. And less. Insomnia formed, and Levi pulled through each empty night one tea cup at a time. Whenever he did manage to snag an hour or two, Kenny and Petra wrenched him back awake, drenched with perspiration.

The night before the ambush, Levi lay awake in bed. He sucked his teeth. _Enough with bad omens_. He left his room. Eren's room door was shut. It was dark under the door.

Levi knocked softly and cracked open the door. His eyes adjusted. Eren lay flat on his bed, staring at the ceiling. "Can I lay here tonight, Eren?" He didn't answer.

The brunet shut the door and lowered himself on the mattress. He turned on his side, hands flat on the empty space between them. "It can't be comfortable to sleep like that."

Indeed, it looked stiff. Eren's arm were ironed to his ruler-straight form. He cocked a head to Levi, earning a small smile from the raven. "You're going to come tomorrow, aren't you?"

The smile melted. "Yes."

Eren stared with a mixed expression before chuckling, looking back at the roof. "I never _could_ stop you." The bed croaked and the sheets rustled as he rolled to face the other.

Watching those shaded blue and green eyes, Levi decided. They looked sad. "Just spit it out, you brat."

The colors danced when Eren laughed. "I rather think it's the other way around, that insult." The great oaf grew silent and somber. You provide so many problems, Levi. Making messes, giving attitudes, your height-" (Levi glared. "Oy, oy.") "- and yet, on top of that, you've just gotta love me."

"If I could help it, I would," Levi added bitterly.

"Me too, would you believe it?" he laughed sourly. "But I can't help loving you too, Levi. Aren't I a misfit."

"Don't go emo on me, Bright Eyes. I came here to sleep, not get philosophy lessons."

Eren grinned crookedly. "Okay, okay."

Levi closed his eyes, and late at night, when he was sure Eren was asleep, he rolled over and whispered, "I love you, too," into a pillow. Unbeknownst to him, Eren bit his lip.

It was almost twenty hours later. Everyone was in the main room, it being more crowed with no one sitting still. Levi could clearly see why they were so damn money-broke as he buckled his bullet-proof vest on over a dark shirt. Mikasa was tying up some boots, and Sasha pulled her hair into a knot. Hanji handed him bullets and smiled; Levi stared and nodded while he talked.

The raven felt fine until someone handed him a sheathed knife. He glanced up. It was Eren. His eyes were grave. "Best be prepared." Levi felt nauseous.

"We'll exterminate them before they can even find out who we are," Hanji was saying. "Tech is on the ready." He punched his palm. "Let's make this quick. I'm running out of people in my lab." Levi tried to ignore that last part as they left.

He wondered what his self from two years ago would do in this situation. It wasn't like he was a cold-blooded killer now, but he couldn't put his finger on why he seemed like a different person.

They moved alone or in small groups, used back trails, and walked in the shadows. All to avoid attention. Some computer whizbag back at home must have been monitoring them, too. A streetlight flickered out or a car shielded them whenever someone couldn't avoid direct notice.

Mikasa and Armin joined Eren. Levi walked alone. He wondered if, were Petra alive, she would have been on his side. _It's those people_ , Levi thought angrily. His eyebrows dug further down, and his hand clenched into a fist over his gun. _They killed her, and tried to kill me._

He walked for a long, long time. His feet burned, and cold sweat trickled down his neck. _I'm going to_ kill _people tonight._ To get revenge. To protect his current home. To keep Eren. Whatever excuse worked.

Most of the buildings here looked run down. Levi recognized the town name. This area was in bankrupt heaven, told by the ruins. Crime was exponentially high here. Everyone slowed down, grouping closer.

A gunshot rang through the air. It sounded like an explosion in the dark quiet. Levi squinted, looking up. The flash of a body disappeared in an upper floor building. They were barely illuminated in that moment from the full moon and a handful of flickering lamps.

Sasha was shot. A man he never talked to but knew was named Connie cried out and dropped to his knees. The group dispersed. He picked up limp Sasha and staggered.

Levi jogged to Hanji, who was pushed against the shade of two buildings. "They've caught on to us. Shit." His eyebrows furrowed deeply into wide, brown eyes. Levi took a step back. Hanji was livid. " _Shit_. Shit, shit, _shit_!" He clawed at his hair and noticed Levi. "You. Hide. You can't die."

Fire filled the empty space. Hanji lifted a rather large gun- he actually recognized the one as a Barrett rifle. He braced himself against the kick, and grinned at Levi. "Smoke 'em out." Hanji fired.

He entered the street again, but his hearing was useless. It would be half busted after all the shots. Levi trained on a figure in a building aiming at an oblivious Connie, who was sobbing. Arms extended full length, he closed one eye. Fired. The guy fell out the window- actually, in real life, died, falling out of a window. In other circumstances, Levi would be wonder struck.

Right now, he was dealing with the fact that he'd killed a person.

_They killed first_ , he reminded himself, as if it would help. The blood was on his hands; he was a murderer. He was just as good as Kenny. People were flooding out of nowhere, it seemed. An actual war was occurring. Levi's gut twisted and jerked. He shot and shot and shot. He reloaded and shot again. He recognized fewer and fewer people. Everyone was dying, on both sides.

Mikasa held two hand guns, shooting both while advancing on the enemy. She comforted him for the first time. Hanji was still alive. Levi could barely hear Connie's moaning.People just dropped of their own accord. Levi's head whipped side to side, him propped against a trash bin. Eren must have found an unlocked building; he was wiping them out left and right from above. And then Connie was cut off. His body was silent and still.

They were being overpowered, Levi realized with horror. He stumbled to his feet as Hanji died. _I've got to do something_. His shots were shaky, and his mind was jarred.

Eren stopped firing. He wasn't visible from the window any longer. Levi stifled a noise and wasted a ridiculous number of bullets. It was just the two Ackermans now. Mikasa realized this, too. She squinted with one eye at Levi, jerking her head away from the chaos. "Get out!"

Levi's gun clicked uselessly. His clips were each empty. Wheezing noises escaped between his teeth. _I'm still not dead. I'm still not dead._

He looked like he was waiting for the raven, who darted up the stairs three at a time, checking each room. "Hello, Levi," Eren called when he'd found the right door. He was sitting under the window, looking quite happy.

"Eren!" Levi called, and ran. He sat beside the taller.

"Someone must've calculated wrong, eh?" He laughed himself into a coughing fit. Red spotted Levi's hand when he touched his spasming chest.

"Where are you hurt?!"

Eren pushed Levi off him. "Don't get too passionate on battle grounds, now. Haha." It was quiet outside.

White noise buzzed in Levi's ears. His vision blurred. "Please tell me where."

He closed his eyes, cocked his head, and smiled. Stress pulled under his eyelashes. Levi's heart squeezed. "Oh, well," Eren muttered. "If you must know."

A hand that was pressed against his temple lowered, and before long, blood crept down the side of his face. "Not clotting too well, haha. What can you expect from head wounds?" Levi used his knife to cut off his sleeve, and pressed it to the wound. "I only _was_ grazed. That's a bit much- you know small head wounds bleed too much."

"That's not all," the raven murmured. "Tell me." Eren wouldn't look at him. He unbuckled the other's vest and brushed his fingers over a spreading wet patch on his chest. "Damn it, Eren!"

"Silly old busted thing, right?" Eren's voice caught, and Levi's eyes darted up. Tears gathered on the older's chin and _plip_ -ed onto his shirt. "Just missed my important organs, the bullet. L-lucky me."

The raven cut away at the sticking shirt and panicked at the wound. "It most likely shattered inside," Eren said. "So don't perform miracle surgery with that knife, if you would."

Levi put a hand on either side of Eren's face and kissed him, tasting tears. "I'll get you to a hospital."

"Stop lying to yourself." Levi stared blankly. "The nearest help would not be too close. And how would you get me past those worker bees down there?" Eren shifted. "You'll survive on your own. Get going, now."

His head was bowed. He shook his head, bottom lip shaking. "Eren, you idiot."

Eren pushed his forehead against Levi's and gave that stupid, crooked grin. "I love you, Levi. I love you. I love you."

"Not you, too." His voice quivered. "Not again." Where was God now?

"They're coming. You have to leave." Weight creaked on wooden floors right outside.

"No, no, Eren. I have too much to-"

"Ah, phooey." Eren leaned back against the wall. "Live for me, goddamn it." And he was quiet. Petra stared at him. Kenny watched.

It was all the same.

Levi stood. He hummed curtly in agreement to the body. The knife was cold in his fingers. He was just feeling it over when a man rounded the corner. He regarded the stranger with wide, staring eyes. "Oh. You were quick." Levi spun the knife in his grip once and approached him, raising it. Aside from a silver glint, the last thing the stranger saw was the hint of a smile.

But surely, he had pictured things.

* * *

 

"Target acquired." Levi lowered fingers from his earpiece, pulling out a pocketbook. He read over its database, sucking his teeth.

"Close in on-" Erwin's voice squeaked in his ear, which was cut off as he yanked out the piece and tucked it in a pocket inside a flap of his jacket.

He turned to the pair of young adults, probably mid-twenties, pulling a silencer on his handgun. "Now." They winced, probably pissing their pants.

"Please don't-" one man began.

"Be quiet." Levi shot the man in the thigh. He whimpered, but stayed silent.

"You bastards, oh, God, you two. Got into trouble, have we?" He pushed Petra's glasses up the bridge of his nose with two fingers. "Assholes are jealous of all the shit you've gotten into." Levi snapped the book shut, put it away, and really studied them.

The unhurt man pointed a finger at him. "I-I've seen you before. You're that Underground guy, w-who killed over a hundred men on his own with only a knife during that gang war five years ago."

"Over a hundred?" he murmured.

The man's face broke out in utter terror as he watched a smile spread across the raven's face. "W-what are you?!" he cried.

He lifted the hand with his gun. "Why, I'm Levi Ackerman."

 


End file.
